5 Minute Major for Interference, a Game Misconduct, Then an Additional 4 Game Suspension?

Vancouver Canucks defenseman Aaron Rome has been suspended for 4 games following his hit on Boston forward Nathan Horton. I have to say that this is uncalled for.

Let me first say that I wish Nathan Horton a speedy recovery and that the concussion he suffered does not have any effect on his ability to play the game. Now, let’s get into why I think this suspension is wrong and why I believe the hit was clean…yeah I said clean!

I know it sounds like I have no regard for other human beings by saying that the hit was clean, but in the realm of hockey it was. Rome used his shoulder to make INITIAL contact with Horton’s chest and any contact to the head was minimal and something similar to a grazing blow. The one thing about the hit that was wrong was that it was late. But a late hit that is clean doesn’t deserve a suspension…it deserves an interference penalty; which is what Rome received. There was a severe injury on the play because of the late hit; which is why Rome’s penalty was a 5 minute major which carries a game misconduct. So why 4 more games?

Senior VP of Hockey Operations for the NHL Mike Murphy handed out the suspension because “It caused a serious injury to Nathan Horton. So the key components are: the late hit, which I had it close to a second late — we have our own formula at NHL hockey operations for determining late hits, and it was late. And we saw the seriousness of the injury with Nathan on the ice last night.
“That's basically what we deliberated on. We tried to compare it with some of the other ones in the past. But it stands alone. It's why we made the ruling.” – The Vancouver Sun

For the complete story http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Aaron+Rome+suspension+fair+Canucks+think+direction/4907668/story.html

So Murphy is admitting that there is no precedent for giving Rome a 4 game suspension and ending his Stanley Cup Finals. Now does this set a precedent? So any time a player is injured because of an interference play, it will be a 4 game suspension? Or is the thinking of Murphy that because Horton will miss the rest of the Finals, so will Rome?

If the latter is the case, that is a dangerous direction for hockey to go in. If players see that kind of action being taken, then why not embellish an injury to keep another player out longer. A slippery slope indeed…
The NHL has been moving the game in a direction to attract more fans and advertisers and they believe that will happen with more scoring. But when you change rules to allow for more scoring, the game gets faster and when the fastest game on ice gets even faster, it get exponentially more dangerous.
Rome’s hit on Horton is a result of a player thinking that I don’t need to watch where I’m going because the league wants me to score. The only problem is that the definition of Rome’s position is to prevent players from getting a chance to score.

In my opinion, players in the NHL are being protected by new rulings that make them able to skate around the ice with their heads down and not have a fear of getting hit. With the way things are going, I wouldn’t be surprised if in 5 years, the NHL becomes an Adult Safe Hockey League with body checking not allowed and anyone who can skate fast and score will be able to make millions of dollars.

That’s not an NHL that sounds exciting to me. I play in those leagues now and have to pay to play…